The Automated Fare Collection System (AFCS) will revolutionize the country's land transport system and make it at par with other countries, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Jaime Bautista stated Thursday, September 1, 2022.
Once the AFCS is institutionalized, Filipino commuters can pay cashless in modern public utility vehicles (PUVs), he pointed out.
“This will bring us closer to achieving global standards in cashless payments when commuting, following the norm in many other countries,” Secretary Bautista reiterated in his message during the pilot production test for the AFCS Europay-Mastercard-Visa (EMV) at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange.
“I would like to believe that the majority of our commuters, not just here in Metro Manila, have overcome the reluctance to embrace technology in our mass transport system because they have seen the significance of technological advancements to ease their commute,” he explained.
“The AFCS EMV PPT will be the basis for promulgating a policy for cashless payments,” according to Bautista.
The AFCS will accept EMV-compliant contactless credit, debit and pre-paid bank cards as cashless payment instruments in public transport.
But pilot production testing in real-time will be conducted before the AFC becomes commercially operational.
The project will be piloted with participating 150 PUVs in the National Capital Region, Central Luzon, CALABARZON Region, and Central Visayas.
Centralizing payment in modern PUVs is in accordance with the DOTr’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP), says Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Chair Atty. Cheloy Garafil.
The cashless payment option will also eliminate the transmission of the COVID-19 virus, she added.
State-owned Landbank of the Philippines likewise supports the cashless and contactless initiative for public utility vehicles, President and CEO Cecilia Borromeo confirmed.